Painted by nature, printed by artists
Butterfly materials in the work of Otto Marseus van Schrieck and Maximilian Prüfer
In: Netherlands Yearbook for History of Art / Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek OnlineSearch for other papers by V.E. Mandrij in
Current site
Google Scholar
This article brings the 17th-century Dutch painter Otto Marseus van Schrieck and the contemporary German artist Maximilian Prüfer into dialogue. It investigates in particular Marseus’ and Prüfer’s use of butterfly scales as materials and motifs in their works of art. Both artists developed a similar technique of butterfly imprints (lepidochromy), which consists of transferring the scales of real butterflies onto another surface. The imprints thus combine medium with representation and the object being represented. The artists used a variety of animal substances to make their artworks, some still visible, some not, and gathered living animals to depict after life or to work with in other ways. Knowledge of and interest in natural history inform the work of both artists but their reflections on human relationships with other animals and with ‘nature’ differ.
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| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
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Painted by nature, printed by artists
Butterfly materials in the work of Otto Marseus van Schrieck and Maximilian Prüfer
In: Netherlands Yearbook for History of Art / Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek OnlineSearch for other papers by V.E. Mandrij in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
This article brings the 17th-century Dutch painter Otto Marseus van Schrieck and the contemporary German artist Maximilian Prüfer into dialogue. It investigates in particular Marseus’ and Prüfer’s use of butterfly scales as materials and motifs in their works of art. Both artists developed a similar technique of butterfly imprints (lepidochromy), which consists of transferring the scales of real butterflies onto another surface. The imprints thus combine medium with representation and the object being represented. The artists used a variety of animal substances to make their artworks, some still visible, some not, and gathered living animals to depict after life or to work with in other ways. Knowledge of and interest in natural history inform the work of both artists but their reflections on human relationships with other animals and with ‘nature’ differ.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 1107 | 215 | 19 |
| Full Text Views | 101 | 8 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 294 | 19 | 0 |
